Workers in the automotive, farm equipment, marine, airline, computer hardware, and other industries often must work from a supine or sitting position. For example, working under a vehicle for automobile repair can be a backbreaking task due to the use of uncomfortable, utilitarian creepers which offer little in the ways of comfort or convenience. Headrests on conventional creepers are either fixed or simply pivot forward, the effect of these models is to push the user's chin into the chest, creating an uncomfortable and contorted position. In addition, the wheels or casters on existing creepers are prone to being caught in cracks or expansion joints on the workplace floor.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,721,316 to Whiteside discloses a blow-molded creeper which includes a flat upper surface having a head rest for the mechanic. The shell of the creeper includes an upper sheet and a lower sheet. In the lower sheet are a plurality of ribs and truncated cones which project upwardly into engagement with the thermoplastic upper sheet which forms the upper surface of the creeper. The ribs and truncated cones are bonded to the upper surface to provide structural integrity.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,792,147 to Wissing describes a mechanics creeper which has a molded body shell with upturned peripheral edges or walls forming a receiving area within the walls for receiving the head and torso of a user. Wheels are mounted on the body shell so that the shell can easily roll over various types of surfaces with the upturned peripheral walls protecting the user from water, mud, or other materials and from striking unseen objects as the creeper is moved. The wheels may be removable so that the body shell, having a smooth outside contour, may slide over surfaces such as mud, sand, or snow, or through rubble were wheels are unuseable.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,875,694 to Hamrick teaches an improved mechanic's creeper apparatus including a flat, generally rectangularly configured platform, the four corner portions of which may be tapered for streamlining. The device includes a longitudinal support axis (axis of symmetry) along which are positioned head end and foot end casters, and a transverse support axis disposed nearer the foot end of the platform than to the head end and along which are positioned side casters. Upstanding fenders are disposed at the four caster locations for mounting the caster devices to the platform. A head rest is also provided at the head end of the device and extends over the fender disposed at the head end.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,330,209 to Pool discloses a low profile mechanics creeper which includes a closed loop, unitary metal frame supported by heavy duty casters recessed at spaced intervals in the frame. The frame is comprised of a single, closed loop rectangular shape, and a single cross member attached to opposite sides of the frame to assist in support of a platform. The creeper is thus configured to define a low profile while minimizing any obstructions to the user's field of motion.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,503,415 to Powell describes an auto mechanics creeper having side rails such that trays may be temporarily attached to either rail by sliding a lip of the respective tray into a slot between the creeper platform and the rail.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,641,146 to Reese teaches a creeper having a base originally used for an engine hoist. The base has wheels for easy mobility. The base in its original form may look like an A-shape when viewed from above. Alternatively, the base is modified to accommodate a tilt front end vehicle like a tractor trailer truck. The height adjuster is an extendable/retractable device such as a hydraulic cylinder. A support beam connects the base to a platform. A vertical arm support, which is preferably metal, keeps the height adjuster in proper alignment for the range of movement of the platform. The platform has a frame. Although the frame can be any number of pieces, it is two pieces in this embodiment. The two pieces include a body section and a chest board section connected by a pivot plate. The entire platform can be folded down for easy storage. Each section is preferably padded with a body pad and a chest pad, respectively. There are preferably three platform pivot points: a first pivot point which attaches the platform to the support beam, a second pivot point where the height adjuster is mounted, and a third pivot point between the chest board and the body board.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,702,305 to Miles discloses an inclinable creeper including a carriaged framework supporting a bed, the bed including an inclinable portion and a mechanism for raising the inclinable portion upon actuation of a lever, for securing the inclinable portion when the lever is not actuated, and for allowing the inclinable portion to be forcibly lowered when the lever is actuated.
The foregoing patents reflect the current state of the art of which the present inventor is aware. Reference to, and discussion of, these patents is intended to aid in discharging Applicant's acknowledged duty of candor in disclosing information that may be relevant to the examination of claims to the present invention. However, it is respectfully submitted that none of the above-indicated patents disclose, teach, suggest, show, or otherwise render obvious, either singly or when considered in combination, the invention described and claimed herein.